Xbox 360 repairs to cost Microsoft millions

By Aislinn Simpson

12:01AM BST 07 Jul 2008

Computer firm Microsoft is facing a multimillion pound bill to repair Xbox 360s hit by a problem known as the "red ring of death".

The problem sees the green circle of lights around the power button turn red and the unit permanently freezes. Hundreds of owners have sent their £290 consoles back to Microsoft, which has sent them to Germany to be repaired at a cost of millions of pounds. Xbox 360 web forums have been full of horror stories of machines breaking down, and the cost to Microsoft to mend them has been reported to be up to £500m.

One gamer affected by the problem is 16-year-old Jamie King, from Gomshall, Surrey. He said his Xbox 360 gave up the ghost last month, just eight months after he bought it. "First, it kept freezing, them it developed the red ring of death," he said.

The problem prompted Microsoft to extend the warranty on Xbox 360s by three years and look into what is causing the hardware failure.

Robbie Bach, president of Microsoft’s Entertainment & Devices Division, stressed that the majority of Xbox 360 owners were unaffected.

"This problem has caused frustration for some of our customers and for that, we sincerely apologise," he said.

The red ring of death is not the first to affect the hugely-popular consoles and their programmes.

After unprecedented hype and record sales last month, some gamers who bought Grand Theft Auto IV reported that their new purchase was freezing up during introductory scenes on both the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.

Last year, the company had to recall 230,000 Xbox 360 steering wheels after complaints that they were overheating, and it spent £500m recalling power cords that came with units made before 2003 after 300 caught fire.